We teamed up with Chicago bedding and textile Company Unison to restore a number of vintage furniture items. Together with our upholsterer we documented the process of refinishing and reupholstering a set of vintage Jens Risom chairs. Scroll through below to see the many steps taken to restore a set of chairs.

STRIPPING

We use a low VOC non-methelyene Chloride base stripper. We hand strip finish rather then use a dip tank. This reduces the amount of chemicals needed on hand. Once the finish is removed the chair is cleaned and then goes onto sanding and repair.

SANDING & REPAIR

Before finish is applied any wood surface must be sanded with a number of grits of sand paper to allow even staining and finishing. Structural repairs are also done at this point. Joints are glued and veneer is repaired.

STAINING

Stains are tested until the desired tone is reached. We often create custom stain mixes to achieve a precise color match. On this set of chairs we applied the stain by hand.

We spray finished these chairs with a water based laquer. Chairs are often finished with this method due to the volume of surface area. Some finishes must be applied by hand. We work with our clients to find the best method to match their vision and budget.

Once finishing was complete the chairs were send to the upholsterer, where new foam and upholstery was applied.